


Handle with care

by Infinity2020



Category: Downton Abbey
Genre: Established Relationship, Fluff and Angst, M/M, POV Alternating, POV Third Person, Past Relationship(s), Triple Drabble
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-16 12:09:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 300
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29949777
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Infinity2020/pseuds/Infinity2020
Summary: A brief look from three perspectives.
Relationships: Thomas Barrow/Edward Courtenay, Thomas Barrow/Philip Duke of Crowborough, Thomas Barrow/Richard Ellis
Comments: 8
Kudos: 36





	Handle with care

**Author's Note:**

> I don't think it came out very well, but this idea would not stop badgering me, so here we go.

Thomas might as well be a kitten, Philip muses. 

In the privacy of the duke's chambers, he is all restless energy and sharp little teeth; he's blunt and demanding, yet surprisingly fragile and painfully needy, the way so many lost, naive creatures tend to be. 

Philip can't help himself. There is something empowering about this splendid young man being his; something exquisite about his dependence and that constant desire for attention, for more.

Somebody like that would break with minimal effort, he gathers. Will it really matter if Philip is the one to throw the first stone, in the end? 

* * *

If he weren't human, Corporal Barrow could be a mother cat, Edward reckons. 

The rather aloof, snide personality he throws around the other ordelies is frequently belied by the nurturing side he shows to the patients; he won't tolerate childish outbursts, yet he's always the quickest to react at the first sign of real trouble, all soothing words and firm, protective hands. 

He won't recognize it, how much he actually cares - perhaps it does sneak upon him, this bursting heart. 

Somebody like that could be so easily broken, Edward fears. He prays he will never get to see it happen. 

* * *

Thomas is rather feline-like, Richard has noticed. 

All piercing eyes and rigid posture one instant, then all fluid movements and soft sounds the next. The most curious blend of wary and reckless and affectionate and devoted. 

He is so very hesitant at times, circling and teetering at the edge of the drop, over and over again; eventually, he will steel himself and take the seemingly impossible leap, curling into the shelter of his partner's arms with the most lovely, blissful hum. 

Somebody like that has broken in the wrong hands, Richard knows. Never again, he swears, not on his watch. 


End file.
